


beneath the city two hearts beat soul engines running through a night so tender

by buckybunnyteeth



Series: Flashvibe week(s) 2k16 [3]
Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Hurt/Comfort, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-10
Updated: 2016-05-10
Packaged: 2018-06-07 14:41:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,194
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6809365
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/buckybunnyteeth/pseuds/buckybunnyteeth
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Barry is standing on the shore next to Iris when he loses his colours. His world suddenly shifts from saturated to black and white and it hits him in the chest like a bullet.</p><p>Cisco.</p><p>Oh god. </p><p>Oh god please no.</p><p> </p><p>Flashvibe Week Wednesday May 11th/Day 3; Soulmate AU</p>
            </blockquote>





	beneath the city two hearts beat soul engines running through a night so tender

"Love isn’t soft, like those poets say. Love has teeth which bite and the wounds never close."  
\- Stephen King, The Body 1982

 

Barry is standing on the shore next to Iris when he loses his colours. His world suddenly shifts from saturated to black and white and it hits him in the chest like a bullet.

Cisco.

Oh god. 

Oh god please no.

And then Iris is speaking, sobbing about Joe and there is a giant tsunami heading for the City and there is no time to mourn the man he knows in his heart is dead. Cisco is dead. Oh god.

He calls Caitlin and cuts her off before she can tell him what he already knows. He has to stop this wave and keep the city safe before he can let himself give in to the gaping horrible darkness that is spreading though him.

He tells Iris he’s sorry, and he doesn’t kiss her like he would of a year ago, before changing into his suit and running towards the wave that’s threatening everyone he loves. Well not everyone. Not anymore.

He runs ad he runs till it feels like his molecules are burning inside of him, until the burn and strain of it is threatening to tear him apart, until his eyes feel as though they are going to rip out of their sockets, he runs and runs and-

And then he isn’t running in front of the wave anymore. He’s standing in the street, with the yelling woman and they guy twirling the sign. He’s standing in the past.

Holy crap.

“You okay, bear?”

He jumps at the sound of Cisco’s voice in his ear. Cisco is alive!

Cisco is alive because this is the past. Whatever killed him hasn’t happened yet. 

Barry gets another chance.

“Yeah, I’m just ah, tired.”

“…have you been eating your protein bars, are you feeling light headed?”

“No, ah, I’m fine just-”

“Why is your heart beating so fast, bro?”

Because you’re alive and I have never heard a better sound in my life than your voice. 

“Maybe I just really like talking to you.”

Cisco snorts, amused, before Dr Wells cuts in.

“The Morgue, Mr. Allen.”

The Morgue. Mardon. He gets another chance.

…

When Barry woke up from his Coma the first thing he saw was Cisco Ramon’s face, and his world instantly flooded with colour. His panic and uncertainty was kicked up ten notches, as he stared into the beautiful brown eyes of his soulmate.

There are days that Barry wonders if he had met Cisco anywhere else if he would have handled the whole thing better. If maybe he would’ve given Cisco a chance instead of panicking and trampling all over the situation. 

He was so confused and overwhelmed about this new world of colour, confused with finding his soulmate after years of being in love with Iris, and then it got even worse when they discovered his powers.

So he and Cisco never talked about it. They ignored the zing they felt when they were around each other, never touched for too long or too often. They kept it all pretty best bros platonic. 

Except Barry stopped thinking about Iris so much, and he couldn’t go out with Linda when she asked. And he knew without asking that Cisco wanted him, and it made Barry blush whenever he thought about it. 

He always told himself that when they got the Man in Yellow and his Dad was free he would finally get around to trying with Cisco, would give them a chance to see if they were a good match or if the bond was unviable.

But now he knew what it felt like to live without Cisco, to suddenly be dropped back into horrible desolate black and white. 

Now none of those panics, none of those fears, seemed to matter. He didn’t want to wait anymore.

He was planning on zipping too the lab when he was done at the station. But then he got sucked into a conversation with Iris, Eddie and Joe and that plan got derailed.

He’s itching to throw an excuse at them and run over to STAR labs, to find Cisco and hug the daylights out of him, when a familiar shiver zips up his spine.

He turns to look at the elevator just as the doors are opening to see Cisco, in all of his Technicolor glory. The conversation around him falls away as they lock and Cisco smiles at him brightly. 

Barry is walking towards him before he can really register it. He drinks in the sight of his soulmate, the Dinosaurs vs. Robots vs. Aliens shirt, the way he has left his hair curly today, the way his mouth is quirked up in a smile while his eyes watch Barry cautiously.

He’s beautiful and Barry hates that it’s taken this long for him to realize that. 

“Hey man,” Cisco says cheerfully, “I thought I’d come and see if you were okay, we don’t want you fainting on us again-”

Barry cups his face and kisses him before he can finish that sentence. Cisco makes a small surprised noise against his lips but leans into it, opening his mouth under Barry’s in a way that probably wasn’t appropriate for the CCPD lobby.

The kiss zings through Barry’s body like his lightening, once and for all solidifying the bond between them.

“You should, um,” Cisco can’t hide his grin or blush when they pull apart, “You should tell me what I did to make that happen so I can do it every day. For like, the rest of my life.”

Barry chuckles and pushes a curl behind Cisco’s ear.

“You smiled,” Barry answers without thinking.

Cisco ducks his head but his smile doesn’t fade.

“I uh, I was beginning to think this would never happen.”

“I know, I’m sorry,” Barry tells him softly, “I’m an idiot.”

“No, its okay,” Cisco tells him and it’s sincere, “We’re here now.”

Barry grins at him and kisses him again, soft and quick.

They both startle when Joe appears beside them, giggling his head off before wrapping Cisco in a big bear hug.

“Welcome to the Family,” his chuckles, messing up Cisco’s hair as he steps back, “First little tip; maybe cut back on the pda in police stations.”

Cisco ducks behind his hair and Barry thinks it’s adorable.

Iris rushes in next to wrap Cisco in a hug.

“Finally!” She groans, “I was beginning to think I was going to have to pull your heads out of your asses myself!”

“An asshat-endectomy,” Eddie tries to joke, and its awkward but Barry’s appreciates the attempt so he laughs.

And for a moment all his troubles are dimmer. His world is bright and happy, his tiny family is safe and the town is tsunami free. And he has his soulmate now.

He slips his hand into Cisco’s and grins harder when the other name squeezes back.

He’s not going to let Cisco die. And he’s not going to stop either of them from living either.

They break apart and Cisco looks up at him with wide glittering eyes.

**Author's Note:**

> its past midnight here so im gonna post this so I can spend all day tomorrow writing day 4. I have a soulmate fic already in progress that I was gonna use, but its going to be really long and I didn't have time to finish it. tell me what you think.


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